Can-body re-former.



J. A. GRAY. CAN BODY RE-FORMER. APPLICATION FILED APR. is. 19m.

wwm I Patented Aug. 31, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

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WITNESSES: M. w BY A f l, A. GRAY. CAN BODY RE-FORME R APPLICATION FILED APR l6. I914. Pzrtmfied Aug. 3-1, 1915.

SHEETSSHEE12 a I a WITNESSES: 1 V

J. A. GRAY.

CAN BODY RE-FORMER. APPLICATION FILED APR.1 6. m4.

Patented Aug. 31, 1915.

IN VEN TO.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

dflfiia ATTORNEY.

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WITNESSES:

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JJQJiII'lE A. GRAY, 0F Sill? FRANCISCO,

CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN CAN COMPANY, {7 F EEAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Specification of Letters Patent.

CAN-BGDY RE-FDRMER.

Patented 31, 1915.

Application filed April 16, 1914. Serial No. 8321.280.

To all whom may concern:

Be it known that 1, JAMES ALFRED GRAY, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco and of California, have invented certain and useful improvements in Can-Body rulers of which the following is a .cstion. i re present invention relates to can body orining or reshaping machines adapted ior operating on can bodies. which have con. compressed or flattened to a substantially oval form for convenience in shipment, and which it is desired to again recylindrical form for the filling tl'iereof and the placing of ends thereon. I The invention has for its principal objects to provide a machine of the above mentioned type which is capable of gradually reforming to a cylindrical form substantially flat can bodies, Without cracking or injury to the metal or seam thereof; one into which the substantially can bodies are automatically fed and from which said can bodies discharged in a cylindrical form; one through which t are carried by 4 reforming mechanism; and one which is capable of rapidly operating on can bodies, thus reducing to a minimum the cost of reforming the same.

With the above mentioned and other objects in View, the invention consists in the novel construction-and combination of parts hereinafter described, illustrated in companying drawings and pointed out in the claims hereto appended; it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details of"c'onstruction Within the scope of the appendedclaims may be esorted to without-departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages ofthe invention. l I

To more fully comprehend the invention, reference is directed to the accompanying drawings, wherein I Figure l .is a side elevation of my improved machine partly broken away, disclosing the reforming rolls and the means for feeding the compressed cans thereto. ig. 2 is a vertical central sectional view taken on line o--v of Fig- 3. Fig. 3 is a e can bodies as reformed the ac- I directly above transverse sectional view taken on line 'w w of Fig. 1. Fig. 4: is a sectional view taken on line s-s--Fig. 1, disclosing the driving gears for the reforming rolls. Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken on line ;-Fig. 1. disclosing the configuration of the reforming rolls adjacent the feed end of the machine. Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional View taken on line ;z y of Fig. 1, disclosing certain of the side and top reforming rolls. Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional View taken on line z-zof Fig 1. F 8 is a. View in elevation of the discharge end of the machine. F ig.'9 is a perspective View of a flattened can body before the same has been reformed.

Referring more ings, wherein like characters of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 1 designates a suitable substantially oblong base, formed in its-uudersurface With the recess Paid base is provided on its upper surface with upwardly projecting bearing studs 3, which are arranged in pairs extending longitudin lly of the base and the distance between the studs of each pair decreases from the feed end of the machine toward the dis cl'iarge end thereof.

top frame or plate 4, provided with a central opening and carrying corner standards 5 which coiiperate with other corner standards 6 extending upwardly from the base l'is supported above the same, and said frame or plate is formed on its lower surface with downwardly projecting bearing studs 7. one of which is arranged each stud 3 on the. base 1, and the distance between the ends of opposing studs 7 and 3 increases from the feed end of the machine toward the discharge end thereof.

Positioned between the ends of the first two pair of opposing studs are vertically disposed reforming rolls 8 carrying at their ends integral shafts which are rotatably mountedin said studs.

Other vertically disposed side reforming rolls 10 are positioned between the ends of oppos ng studs and also carry shafts 9 which are rotatably mounted in said studs.

particularly to the draw- I curvature of the faces increases from the The faces of the rolls 8 and 10 are concaved or cut away, as at 10', and the radius of the feed end of the machine to a point adjacent the last pair of vertically disposed rollers at the discharge end, where the radius de creases slightly. The distance between the curved faces of the rollers of each pair decreases from. the feed end of the machine toward thedischarge end, as in Fig. 3, and the length of the rolls increases from the feed end to the discharge end of the ma chine.

Suitable top and bottom horizontally disposed reforming rolls 11 are positioned above and below the' rolls 10 and sa d rolls extend between and at their ends touch the ends. of the vertically disposed rolls of each pairof side rolls, and are provided at their ends with spindles 12 which are rotatably mounted in the side walls of the studs 7 and 3. The surfaces of the compressing rolls 11 are concaved or cut away, as at 13, as are the faces of the rollers 8 and 10, but the radius of the curvature of the surface of said top and bottom reforming rollers decreases from the feed end of the machine to a point adj accnt the last pair of rolls, where the radius increases slightly and is the same as the radius of the vertically disposed reforming rolls. The distance between the curved faces of the top and bottom reforming rolls, increases from the feed end of the machine toward the discharge end thereof, and the length of the .rolls decreases from the feed end of the machine toward the discharge end thereof.

It will be apparent that in rear of the first two pair of rollers 8, the rollers'are arranged in a series of cooperating top and bottom and side reforming rollers, as in Figs. 6, 7 and 8 of the drawings,-and the ends of the curved surfaces of adjacent rolls connect with each other.

Certain ends of the'reforming rolls 10 and 11 are formed with bevel gears 14. which intermesh with each other, and the lower spindles 9 of certain of the vertically disposed rollers project through the base 1 into the recess 2, and are fitted with gear wheels .15, which intermesh with idlers 16 carried by shafts 17. One end of the supporting spindle 12 of the lower horizontally disposed reforming roll adjacent the feed end of the machine extends outwardly through its stud 3, as at 18. and carries a belt pulley 19 which receives its power from any suitable source and is driven in the direction of the arrowFig.. 6.

It will be apparent that power being applied to the pulley 19. therotation thereof will rotate the reforming roll keyed thereto and said roll will in turn rotate the other rolls associated therewith, and the rotation tated in the same direction and at the same 7 speed and by a single drive mechanism. I

Suitable flat plates 20 are secured between the standards 5 and 6 at the outer side of the vertically disposed reforming rollers 10, and said plates are formed with guide fingers 9.1 which project inwardly between the reforming rollers and terminate apj'n-oximately flush with the inner faces thereof. Other plates 22 secured to the upper surface of the base l and to the top plate l are also provided with gu e fingers 9.3 which project between the horizontally disposed reforming rollers 11 and terminate approximately flush with the inner faces thereof.

The flattened can bodies to be reforn'ied are stacked one above the other in a suitable vertically disposed magazine, positioned adacent the first pair of reforming rollers 8 and said magazine comprises spaced angular corner members 24 secured to the top frame or plate a adjacent the feed end, and cerspaced feeding arms 30 which project in a direction toward the reforming rolls and are bifurcated at their free ends forming a finger 31, which, when the arms are reciprocated in a direction toward the compressing-rolls, engage the edge of the lowermost can body and move the same from beneath the stack through the cut cuts 27, and into engagement with the reforming rollers 8. The feeding arms are reciprocated by the following mechanism: Pivotally connected to the member 29 are one end of a pair of links 32. which are respectively pivotally connected at their opposite'ends to the crank arm '33, and the face of the gear 34, said crank arm and said gear being carried at the opposite end of a rotatable shaft mounted in bearings 86 supported by the base 1 adjacent the feed end of the machine and sa1dshaft is rotated through a gear 37 carried by the projecting portion 18 of "the spindle 12, which intermeshes with the gear 34.

By referring to Fig. 1 it will be observed that the front portions of the fingers are" not removed from under the lowermost can body when reciprocated in a rearward direcawaeia tion, but are only moved-a suihcient distance so that the fingers 31 Will. be in a position to engage the'lowermost body on the next forward reciprocation of the arms 'By operating the feeding mechanism by the roller driving mechanism, all parts are so timed as to properly coiiperate with each other when operating on a can body, and a compressed can body when fed forwardly from beneath the stack is side edges by the rotating rollers 8 which pass the can body to the other side reform ing rollers 10, and the top and bottom rej v forming rollers 11, all of which cofiiperate to gradually reduce the major axis of the oval can body as the same is passed therebe tween until the same reaches the third set of reforming rollers of the machine, which. forms the/can body into a circle. As the can body passes said last mentioned set of rollers, it is again reforme nto an oval, but this time with. its major axis in a plane transverse to its former'major axis, this being done to insure the workin out of the crease along the lines m-a: of the body, as in Fig. 9. The body is next passed between the last set of rollers and is again compressed into a true circle, and the rotation of the last set of rollers discharges the reformed can body from the machine in av circularform, and

adapted for receiving the ends By my improved machine, I am enabled to rapidly operate on compressed can bodies to restore the same to their original form; have provided a machine in which the reforming meansforms a conveyor for the can body in its process or reformation; and have.

, provided a machine which is automatic in all of its operations and one which is thoroughly efiicient for the purposes designed. 1

Having thus described my invention What I claim as new and desire to protect by Let ters Patent is:-

1. In a machine of the class described, the same comprising a' reforming matrix through which the can bodies are propelled, the Walls of said matrix forming a substan tially oval entrancefor receiving the compressed can bodies and gradually .termmating into a substantially cylindrical discharge opening, and means for fcedin into said matrix. v

' 2. In a machine of the class described, the same comprising a reforming matrix con sisting of a plurality of reforming rollers having concaved faces, means for rotating said rollers, means/L for feeding. substantially flat can bodies to one end of said matriX, the rotation of said rollers conveying said can bodies through said -matr1x and gradually reforming the same into a substantially cylindrical body engaged at its tiall .7 flat can bodies to one end of from the discharge end g can bodies till 3. In a machine of the class described, the same comprising a reforming matrix open at both ends and consisting of a plurality of reforming 'rollers having concaved faces, and means for rotating said rollers, the rotation of said rollers conveying saill compressed can bodies through said matrix and operating on the same to gradually} reform said bodies into substantially cylindrical bodies. I

4. In a machine of the class described, the same comprising a reforming matrix open at both ends and consisting. of a plurality of rotatably mounted reforming rollers having concaved faces, means for feedin substansaid matri the rotation of said rollers conveying said compressed can bodies between the same and operating on the same to gradually reform said bodies into substantially cylin drical bodies, and means for rotating said rollers in unison and for operating said feeding means.

In an apparatus for the described purose the same com risin means includin pose, the same comprising reforming means 1nclud1ng rotatable rollers forming a ma-- trix and between which a substantially oval can body is said rollers therebetween,

for conveying the can body said rollers as the body passes said rollers, as the body passes received, means for rotating through the matrix formed thereby reduc-' ing the major axis of said compressed can body until the same is substantially cylindrical in form, and means for feeding can bodies to be operated on to said reforming rollers.

'7. In a machine of the class described, the

same comprising a reforming matrix consisting of a plurality of reforming rollers, means for rotating said. rollers, means for feeding substantially flat can bodies to one end of said matrix, the rotation of said rollers conveying said can bodies through said matrix, and gradually reforming thesame intova. cylindrical body, thence forming the same into a substantially oval body with its major axis in a plane at substantially right angles to its previous mayor axis, and thence formin said o'val bodyinto a substantlally cylindrical body.

same comprising a reforming matrix con- 8. In a'machine of the class described, the. q

means for rotating said rollers in the same name to this specification in the presence of direction, the rotation of said rollers contwo subscribing witnesses. veying said compressed can bodies through JAMES A. GRAY. said matrix and operating on the same to 5 gradually reform saidcompressed bodies I Witnessesz.

into substantially cylindrical bodies. l. D. THORNBURGH,

' In testimony whereof I have signed my D. B. RICHARDS. 

